Garment anchor



Jan. 28 1969 C. E. CASS LING GARMENT ANCHOR Filed Sept. 14, 1965 FIG. l

FIG. 2

FIG. 4

CARL E. CASSLING BY Q @M WMA A'TORNEY United States Patent O Thisinvention relates to a support for clothes and more particularly to anadhesive tab adapted to be aiiixed to the body and characterized by afabric engaging and supporting surface.

It is the common experience that many articles of clothing sufferdisarray upon movement of the body.

Claims ,Mens stockings, for example, although made of elastic yarns andthe like have a tendency to creep downward. Other articles of clothingsimilarly shift, though it is desired to maintain them substantiallyfixed in position.

The present invention is directed to an adhesive tab which may beaffixed to the skin at the position to be occupied by a given section ofan article of clothing. The outer surface of the tab is provided withprotrusions or :fibers which impale the garment and preferably becomeattached to the garment so that it will be maintained in position.Preferably, the surface is resilient to permit detachment when thegarment is to be removed.

More particularly, in accordance with the present invention, there isprovided a flexible adhesive tab having an outer surface characterizedby a fabric engaging structure, and more particularly having amultiplicity of outwardly projecting resilient hooks which will impaleand attach themselves to the threads of a given fabric.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the adhesive body is oflarger areal extent than the area occupied by the attaching members.Preferably the center zones of the attaching members are raised from theplane of the adhesive body to form a zone of increased supportcapability.

For a more complete understanding of the present invention and forfurther objects and advantages thereof, reference may now be had to thefollowing description taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a sectional view of an embodiment of the invention as takenalong lines 1-1 of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 2 is a front view of the tab of FIGURE l;

FIGURE 3 illustrates a preferred embodiment of the invention in explodedform;

FIGURE 4 is a sectional view of the embodiment of FIGURE 3; and

FIGURE 5 illustrates one application of the present invention.

Referring now to FIGURE l, there is illustrated a body of a materialsuch as manufactured and sold under the trademark Velcro by VelcroCorporation, 681 5th Ave., New York, N.Y. Such material is characterizedby an upper surface from which there protrudes a plurality of resilienthook-like fibers 11. The fibers 11 have downwardly directed ends of suchcharacter that they will impale and attach themselves to fabrics pressedthereover. An adhesive layer 12 is aixed to the back of the member 10with a removable cover strip 13, such as is well known in the art,normally covering the same and which is normally removed preparatory tothe use of the tab.) The exposed surface of the tab 10 with theoutwardly directed hooks is shown in FIGURE 2 where the hooks arepositioned in a uniform array. However, it will be understood thatdifferent arrays or patterns of hook members may be employed.

3,423,764 Patented Jan. 28, 1969 In the embodiment of FIGURE 3, theadhesive sheet 23 is substantially larger than the hook-carrying sheet20. The sheet 20 is relieved at the corners to form a central supportingarea. A pad 22 is positioned on the rear surface of sheet 20, i.e., thesurface opposite the hooks 21. The sheet 20 and the pad 22 will then beaffixed to the confronting surface of the sheet 23 as to occupy the zonerepresented by the outline 20a. The two sheets 20 and 23 may be securedtogether by any suitable means. The back surface of the sheet 20 will beprovided with an adhesive layer, not shown, so that the tab may beaflixed to the body of the wearer. The construction may be of the typegenerally employed in making adhesive bandages.

FIGURE 5 illustrates one use of the tab of FIGURES 3 and 4. A stocking32 having an upper band 31 is fitted onto a foot 30. The sheet 23 isadhesively secured to the skin above foot 30, with the hook portions 21on the surface of the sheet 20 facing outwardly. The upper band or ribportion of the stocking 32 is then placed on the surface of the sheet 20so that the hooks 21 will engage the rib portion 31 and will hook ontothe fibers or threads forming the rib 31. By this means the stocking canbe supported without the necessity of encircling the leg with anadditional band such as has been traditional.

The invention, of course, may be formed in various sizes and may beattached at various points on the body as the need may require.

Having described the invention in connection with certain specificembodiments thereof, it is to be understood that further modificationsmay now suggest themselves to those skilled in the art and it isintended to cover such modifications as fall within the scope of theappended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. Garment supporting means comprising unitary structure including aiiexible strip having an adhesive layer on one side for adhering to abody surface, and an anchor layer occupying at least a portion of thesurface of said strip opposite said adhesive layer and means anchoringsaid anchor layer at points spaced over the contact area between saidstrip and said anchor layer to unify said strip and said anchor layer,and to distort said anchor layer into a non-planar configuration whensaid flexible strip is in a planar configuration, said anchor layerbeing characterized by a plurality of outwardly directed resilient rodshaving hook-shaped ends.

2. The combination set forth in claim 1 in which said anchor layer is ofan area equal to the area of said iiexible strip.

3. The combination set forth in claim 1 in which said anchor layer is ofan area less than thearea of said flexible strip, with said flexiblestrip forming an exposed margin around said anchor layer.

4. Garment supporting means comprising a flexible strip having anadhesive layer on one side for adhering to a body surface, and having atleast a portion of the surface opposite said adhesive layer occupied byan anchor layerhcharacterized by a plurality of outwardly directedresilient rods having hook-shaped ends, and wherein said flexible stripis nominally planar with a mound-like pad interposed between the face ofsaid flexible strip opposi-te said adhesive layer and the back of saidanchor layer to distort said anchor layer into a non-planarconfiguration when said flexible strip is in a planar configuration.

5. A garment supporting means comprising 'a flexible strip having anadhesive layer on one side for adhering to a body surface and having amound-like surface oppo- 3 4 site said adhesive surface at least aportion of which is 2,561,777 7/1951 Bernstein 2-337 occupied by ananchor layer characterized by a plurality 3,068,529 4/ 1963 Munz et a12-243 X of outwardly directed resilient rods having hook-shaped ends.FOREIGN PATENTS Rferences Cited 5 428,447 5/1935 Great Britain. UNITEDSTATES PATENTS 2,437,583 3/1948 Young 2 309 PATRICK D. LAWSON, PrzmaryExammer. 2,467,380 4/ 1949 Hansen et a1. 2-337 GEORGE V. LARKIN,Assistant Examiner.

1. GARMENT SUPPORTING MEANS COMPRISING UNITARY STRUCTURE INCLUDING AFLEXIBLE STRIP HAVING AN ADHESIVE LAYER ON ONE SIDE FOR ADHERING TO ABODY SURFACE, AND AN ANCHOR LAYER OCCUPYING AT LEAST A PORTION OF THESURFACEE OF SAID STRIP OPPOSITE SAID ADHESIVE LAYER AND MEANS ANCHORINGSAID ANCHOR LAYER AT POINTS SPACED OVER THE CONTACT AREA BETWEEN SAIDSTRIP AND SAID ANCHOR LAYER TO UNIFY SAID STRIP AND SAID ANCHOR LAYER,AND TO DISTORT SAID ANCHOR LAYER INTO A NON-PLANAR CONFIGURATION WHENSAID FLEXIBLE STRIP IS IN A PLANAR CONFIGURATION, SAID ANCHOR LAYERBEING CHARACTERIZED BY A PLURALITY OF OUTWARDLY DIRECTED RESILIENT RODSHAVING HOOK-SHAPED ENDS.